Senator Looks To Update Harassment Laws To Include Social Media

Cyberbullying, stalking and harassment are getting renewed attention in Annapolis.

Five years ago, the General Assembly passed what was considered landmark legislation to make them crimes. Some say the law doesn't go far enough.

Maryland laws don't match up with new threats to kids because many were written before Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other forms of social media were invented.

Christine Pfister McComas lost her daughter to suicide from cyberbullying.

"I hate you. I hate you. I hate you. I hate you. Somehow, I hope you see this and cry yourself to sleep, and then kill yourself," Pfister McComas read from a note sent to her daughter in 2013 while testifying in support of Grace's Law.

Grace's Law is a cyberbullying bill named after Pfister McComas' 15-year-old daughter Grace, who committed suicide on Easter Sunday after repeatedly being bullied through social media. The measure passed and was considered landmark legislation at the time.

"It, unfortunately, has not been a useful statute. I don't think anybody has ever been charged under the statute," said Sen. Bobby Zirkin, chair of the Judicial Proceedings Committee.

Zirkin is introducing two bills to help state law keep up with the times. Grace's Law 2.0 covers more types and circumstances of electronic harassment and increases penalties if convicted. The other measure allows the courts to issue a restraining order and or/an injunction against the perpetrator.

"We have looked at statutes all across the country and picked the best statutes we could find, and really put together a comprehensive bill that would move us ahead of the other states," Zirkin said.

Zirkin said updates are long overdue. For example, current Maryland law considers stalking as physically following someone and mostly views harassment as done verbally face-to-face or conducted over the telephone. The new legislation includes cellphone photos used to threaten, intimidate or embarrass.

"There's just some horrible things that are going on online, and children need protection," Zirkin said.

The proposed new laws are expected to become a proactive tool not only for law enforcement, but for parents and guardians as well. The bills will be heard on Feb. 20 in a Senate committee.